Infant responding to joint attention, executive processes, and self-regulation in preschool children

Infant joint attention is related to behavioral and social outcomes, as well as language in childhood. Recent research and theory suggests that the relations between joint attention and social-behavioral outcomes may reflect the role of executive self-regulatory processes in the development of joint attention. To test this hypothesis two studies were conducted. The first, cross-sectional study examined the development of responding to joint attention (RJA) skill in terms of increasing executive efficiency of responding between 9 and 18 months of age. The results indicated that development of RJA was characterized by a decreased latency to shift attention in following another person's gaze and head turn, as well as an increase in the proportion of correct RJA responses exhibited by older infants. The second study examined the longitudinal relations between 12-month measures of responding to joint attention and 36-month attention regulation in a delay of gratification task. The results indicated that responding to joint attention at 12-months was significantly related to children's use of three types of self-regulation behaviors while waiting for a snack reward at 36 months of age. These observations are discussed in light of a developmental theory of attention regulation and joint attention in infancy.     

Trajectories of Adolescent Psychopathic Traits

There is growing evidence that psychopathic traits are stable across the adolescent developmental period. Yet, no previous studies have examined the longitudinal course of these traits across adolescence. In this study, we examined joint developmental trajectories of grandiose-manipulative traits, callous-unemotional traits, and impulsive-irresponsible behavior and how these trajectories were related to changes in parental behavior and delinquency over time. Participants were 1,068 adolescents from a community sample, who were followed annually over 4 years. Overall, our results showed that a four-class latent class growth model best represented the developmental pattern of adolescent psychopathic traits. Although the majority of adolescents showed low or moderate initial levels that also decreased over time, there was a small group of adolescents who, despite significant decreases in two out of three dimensions, still maintained relatively high levels on all three dimensions. We also found that parental behavior and delinquency developed differently for the groups over time, with the high-decreasing group engaging in more delinquent behavior over time and experiencing more negative parental behavior than any other group. In sum, our findings suggest that there is a group of adolescents at particular risk for negative development.     

The development of aggression and its linkages with violence and youth delinquency

Over the past decade studies of the development of violent juvenile delinquency have gained momentum. Large prospective longitudinal studies on different continents have shown the potential for a developmental approach to clarify the developmental course, determinants and malleability of violent delinquent behaviour by juveniles.

However, notwithstanding these accomplishments, one may wonder to what extent the potential benefits of a truly developmental approach have been brought to fruition to date. Based on a critical review of the literature, three major issues are identified: (1) prospective research has been highly explorative rather than hypothesis testing; (2) development has been described in terms of mean changes with age or static patterns rather than in terms of individual trajectories; and (3) there has been a strong focus on correlates and risk-factors instead of on causal mechanisms driving development. Suggestions are made to resolve these issues by formulating clear developmental theories to be tested with longitudinal experimental studies of individual developmental trajectories, their malleability, and mediators of change.     

A continuum of dimensional separability

Recent studies of children’s perception may be interpreted in terms of a developmental continuum from integrality to separability in the perception of multidimensional variation. Two experiments examined the existence of such a continuum in adult perception. The first experiment indicated that there are dimensional combinations that are neither clearly integral nor separable for adults. Rather, such a combination results in performance patterns intermediate between those found with integral and separable dimensions. The second experiment tested one conceptualization of a continuum of dimensional separability in a speeded classification task. By this conceptualization, the perceived structures of multidimensional variation are orderable by thedegree to which the component dimensions are differentiated. Consistent with this view, performances with three-dimensional combinations are shown to be differentially dependent on dimensional and wholistic relations. The importance of the joint consideration of developmental and adult issues in the perception of multidimensional variation is briefly discussed.     

Interaction of Afferent and Efferent Signals Underlying Joint Position Sense

A model of joint position sense is considered based on the concept that central motor commands are adequately expressed in terms of shifts of the so-called invariant length-tension characteristics for agonist and antagonist muscles. The main points of this concept are discussed to clarify them and to prevent misunderstanding. The basic idea of the model is that the efferent copy of the central motor commands plays the role of a reference frame for evaluation of afferent proprioceptive discharges. An experiment with reproduction of constrained movements was performed in order to investigate the influence of voluntary flexor or extensor muscle tension on position sense in the elbow joint. The results demonstrate adequate perception of joint position on the background of voluntary muscle tension and thus are quite consistent with the model. The role of afferent and efferent signals in position sense is discussed with special reference to views expressed recently by different authors. The interrelation between position sense and sense of effort is considered, based on a concept of senso-motor space.     

Interaction of afferent and efferent signals underlying joint position sense: empirical and theoretical approaches

A model of joint position sense is considered based on the concept that central motor commands are adequately expressed in terms of shifts of the so-called invariant length-tension characteristics for agonist and antagonist muscles. The main points of this concept are discussed to clarify them and to prevent misunderstanding. The basic idea of the model is that the efferent copy of the central motor commands plays the role of a reference frame for evaluation of afferent proprioceptive discharges. An experiment with reproduction of constrained movements was performed in order to investigate the influence of voluntary flexor or extensor muscle tension on position sense in the elbow joint. The results demonstrate adequate perception of joint position on the background of voluntary muscle tension and thus are quite consistent with the model. The role of afferent and efferent signals in position sense is discussed with special reference to views expressed recently by different authors. The interrelation between position sense and sense of effort is considered, based on a concept of senso-motor space.     

Initiation of joint attention and related visual attention processes in infants with autism spectrum disorder: Literature review

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) represents a group of neurodevelopmental disabilities that can be difficult to identify before the age of 2 or 3 years, the age when the full range of behavioral symptoms has emerged in most cases. Initiation of joint attention is an important developmental function in which impairments are already observable before the second birthday and can predict children’s ASD symptomatology. In the first part of this review, we summarize results pertaining to retrospective studies of initiation of joint attention in children with ASD and prospective studies of infants at high risk for ASD during the first 2 years, when this behavior is becoming more complex in terms of frequency, quality, and variety. We will also discuss the implications of impairments in dyadic engagement, a precursor of joint attention behavior, for the early development of joint attention. Finally, the early development of initiation of joint attention has been related to specific visual attention mechanisms such as social orienting and visual disengagement. In the second part of this review, we provide an overview of the relationship between those visual attention mechanisms and subsequent social-communication impairments. Clinical and research implications of these findings for both early detection and early intervention will be discussed.     

Weight and muscularity concerns as longitudinal predictors of body image among early adolescent boys: a test of the dual pathways model

The purpose of this research was to examine the longitudinal contributions of weight loss and muscularity concerns as dual pathways to body image dissatisfaction among early adolescent boys. Study 1 included 67 boys who reported on weight loss concerns, internalized muscular ideal, BMI, and body dissatisfaction during 7th grade and 1 year later. In Study 2, 87 7th and 8th grade boys were assessed in the fall and spring of a school year. The results confirmed that although both weight and muscularity concerns were related to body dissatisfaction, concern with weight loss more strongly detracted from a positive body image than did muscularity concern. The findings are discussed in terms of potential developmental variations in the relative contribution of weight and muscularity to body dissatisfaction among adolescent boys.     

Self-regulation and milestones of adult development: intimacy and generativity

In 2 separate studies, the idea is tested that the positive association between self-regulatory capacities and well-being is partly explained by the positive effect self-regulation has on the successful resolution of developmental crises in Eriksonian terms. In Study 1, attentional control, intimacy, and subjective well-being are assessed in 177 young adults. Results show that attentional control fosters intimacy, which in turn is beneficial to subjective well-being. Study 2 has a longitudinal design: Action control, generativity, purpose in life, and Machiavellianism are measured in 163 adults with an interval of 18 months between the 2 testing occasions. Action control is found to promote the development of generative concern, which in turn increases purpose in life. The latter association, however, is further qualified by Machiavellian attitudes. Results are discussed with respect to the role of self-regulation in development and to belief in the species, which Erikson postulated to be active in the development of generativity.     

Latent class regression analysis for describing cognitive developmental phenomena: An application to transitive reasoning

The aim of cognitive developmental research is to explain latent cognitive processes or structures by means of manifest variables such as age, cognitive behaviour, and environmental influences. In this paper the usefulness of the latent class regression model is discussed for studying cognitive developmental phenomena. Using this model, the relationships between latent and manifest variables can be explained by means of empirical data without the need of strong a priori assumptions made by a cognitive developmental theory. In the latent class regression model a number of classes are distinguished which may be characterized by particular cognitive behaviour. Environmental influences on cognitive behaviour may vary for different (developmental) classes. An application is given of the latent class regression model to transitive reasoning data. The results showed that a Five-Class model best fitted the data and that the latent classes differ with respect to age, strategy use (cognitive behaviour) and the influence of task characteristics (environmental influences) on the strategy use. The flexibility of the model in terms of mixed measurement levels and treatment of different cognitive variables offers a broad application to several cognitive developmental phenomena.     

EEG coherence,joint attention and language development in the second year

Recent research has raised the hypothesis that brain maturation processes may play an important role in the linkage between infant joint attention and language development. This hypothesis was examined using EEG, joint attention and parent report language measures in a longitudinal study of 29 infants assessed at 14, 18 and 24 months of age. The results indicated that both measures of joint attention and EEG coherence at 14 months were related to language development at 24 months. Furthermore, both EEG coherence measures and joint attention measures made contributions to multiple regression equations predicting individual differences in language development. Finally, coherence data from this study were consistent with Thatcher's (1994 ) theory of different patterns of neural integration and differentiation in the early maturation of the left and right hemispheres. The implications of these results for understanding the nature of the relations between joint attention and language development, as well as the utility of EEG coherence measures in developmental neuroscience are discussed.     

孤独症儿童共同注意的神经基础及早期干预

共同注意是指两个人共同对某一事物加以注意, 分享对该事物的兴趣, 它是儿童社会认知发展的奠基性能力。首先, 孤独症儿童共同注意发展主要体现在注视转换、主动展示、分享等能力发展滞后及缺陷; 孤独症儿童共同注意的神经基础：应答性共同注意主要涉及后部皮层注意网络(如颞上沟后部、顶内沟等), 自发性共同注意涉及前部皮层注意网络(如前扣带皮层、背内侧额叶等); 最后, 以回合式教法和关键反应训练为基本方法, 论述了共同注意干预的新近模式和效果评估。未来研究应在孤独症儿童的共同注意发展的年龄特征及机制、共同注意的脑区可塑性及脑网络的发展以及开发更有效的干预方法等方面展开大量研究。     

发展瀑布效应:儿童认知功能与社会适应领域的研究

发展瀑布效应指的是在复杂的发展过程中各种交互作用或相互作用的累积结果,这种发展的累积效应导致跨越不同水平、领域、系统或者不同世代的传播效应。本文阐述了研究者利用发展瀑布效应解释儿童认知功能与社会适应领域的发展时采用的不同模型,介绍了儿童认知功能与社会适应领域的发展瀑布效应,最后对发展瀑布效应在这两个领域的研究方法与应用价值进行了总结与展望。     

员工工作倦怠的发展模型:来自纵向研究的证据

采用Maslach工作倦怠量表对263名企业员工在一年时间内的三个等距时间点(T1,T2,T3)的工作倦怠进行测量,纵向研究中国文化背景下工作倦怠的发展规律,并比较工作倦怠发展的六种因果模型。研究结果表明,去人性化影响成就感降低,且这种影响具有跨时间一致性;但是情绪衰竭和去人性化相互影响的跨时间一致性较低,如T1情绪衰竭影响T2去人性化,但是T2情绪衰竭对T3去人性化的影响不显著;T1去人性化对T2情绪衰竭的影响不显著,但是T2去人性化影响T3情绪衰竭。去人性化在工作倦怠的发展中具有非常重要的作用。     

Patterns of Adolescent Identity Development: Review of Literature and Longitudinal Analysis

A review of theoretical articles demonstrates that the theoretical claims of the identity status model have been greatly moderated over the past 30 years. It has been established that the model is not sufficiently specific to qualify as a developmental theory, and a teleological and unidirectional interpretation of identity development has been abandoned. The development does not have a fixed end-target, achievement, and is also not unidirectional, i.e., always proceeding from the low statuses to the high: a reverse developmental pathway is also possible. The moderation outlined here does not mean that a dominant direction in development must be denied, nor does it conflict with the fundamental developmental hypothesis of the identity status model, which (1) assumes a decrease in diffusion and foreclosure and an increase in achievement during the course of development and (2) specifies a pattern of identity status transitions underlying this progressive development. Reviews of empirical studies on identity development support the first assumption of the fundamental developmental hypothesis but not the second, owing to lack of research. An analysis of empirical studies on the relationship between identity status and psychological well-being further specifies the developmental hypothesis. In view of its associated level of psychological well-being, foreclosure emerges as another possible end-point of identity development, in addition to achievement. The developmental hypothesis and the relationship between identity status and psychological well-being are again addressed in a longitudinal study investigating relational and societal identity in a sample of 1538 Dutch adolescents. Four new identity statuses are used in this study: diffusion, closure, moratorium, and achieving commitment. The results support the first assumption of the developmental hypothesis, although not completely. For relational identity we find a decrease in diffusion and an increase in achievement and for societal identity a decrease in diffusion and an increase in closure. This means that a direction can in fact be indicated in the development of identity, but that closure can also serve as the end-point of the development, particularly for societal identity. Moreover, the domain of societal identity in general displays a less pronounced development than relational identity. This difference between relational and societal identity can be interpreted in terms of the distinction between open and closed domains of identity. In order to test the second assumption of the developmental hypothesis, the patterns of identity development were investigated for the first time in identity status research using log-linear analyses. A number of the status transitions proposed by the developmental hypothesis do not occur, and the developmental pathways are also less comprehensive. We found no indications that identity development proceeds faster in a certain period of adolescence than in other periods. However, the stability of relational identity increases, particularly in postadolescence, and a slow development of identity results in a lower level of psychological well-being.     

Robust recovery of human motion from video using Kalman filters and virtual humans

In sport science, as in clinical gait analysis, optoelectronic motion capture systems based on passive markers are widely used to recover human movement. By processing the corresponding image points, as recorded by multiple cameras, the human kinematics is resolved through multistage processing involving spatial reconstruction, trajectory tracking, joint angle determination, and derivative computation. Key problems with this approach are that marker data can be indistinct, occluded or missing from certain cameras, that phantom markers may be present, and that both 3D reconstruction and tracking may fail. In this paper, we present a novel technique, based on state space filters, that directly estimates the kinematical variables of a virtual mannequin (biomechanical model) from 2D measurements, that is, without requiring 3D reconstruction and tracking. Using Kalman filters, the configuration of the model in terms of joint angles, first and second order derivatives is automatically updated in order to minimize the distances, as measured on TV-cameras, between the 2D measured markers placed on the subject and the corresponding back-projected virtual markers located on the model. The Jacobian and Hessian matrices of the nonlinear observation function are computed through a multidimensional extension of Stirling's interpolation formula. Extensive experiments on simulated and real data confirmed the reliability of the developed system that is robust against false matching and severe marker occlusions. In addition, we show how the proposed technique can be extended to account for skin artifacts and model inaccuracy.     

THE IMPACT OF AUDITION ON THE DEVELOPMENT OF VISUAL ATTENTION

Interactions between audition and vision were investigated in two experiments In the first experiment, school-age hearing children, deaf children with cochlear implants, and deaf children without implants participated in a task in which they were to respond to some visual signals and not others This task did not involve sound at all Deaf children without implants performed much more poorly than hearing children Deaf children with cochlear implants performed considerably better than deaf children without implants The second experiment employed a longitudinal design and showed that the rate of development in visual selective attention was faster for deaf children with cochlear implants than deaf children without implants Moreover, the gams were rapid–occurring within 2 years post-implant surgery The results suggest that a history of experience with sounds matters in the development of visual attention The results are discussed in terms of multimodal developmental processes     

Analyzing developmental trajectories of distinct but related behaviors: a group-based method

This article presents a group-based method to jointly estimate developmental trajectories of 2 distinct but theoretically related measurement series. The method will aid the analysis of comorbidity and heterotypic continuity. Three key outputs of the model are (a) for both measurement series, the form of the trajectory of distinctive subpopulations; (b) the probability of membership in each such trajectory group; and (c) the joint probability of membership in trajectory groups across behaviors. This final output offers 2 novel features. First, the joint probabilities can characterize the linkage in the developmental course of distinct but related behaviors. Second, the joint probabilities can measure differences within the population in the magnitude of this linkage. Two examples are presented to illustrate the application of the method.